Life shows us that there are often times we need a second chance. Maybe even a third or fourth.

I have found that second chances mean you take what you learned the first time around and turn that into something positive. For example... If you've followed along with me the past couple of years, you've learned I am living my "second half" of life. There have been many times over the years that I've had to start over from the beginning. Is it hard? Absolutely! Is it worth it? Again I say, Absolutely!!

If I wouldn't have started my life over with this second chance, there is no telling where or how I would have ended up. A padded room, drooling on myself? Possibly. Six-feet under? Also possible.

Instead, I did the one thing I was too scared to do for many years.... Start the F#@% over! Was it the right decision? Yes! Yes! And Double Yes!

Now, I ask you... Does EVERYONE deserve a second chance? I think the answer to that would be endless and often debated. There are some situations that I fully agree do not deserve that second chance. But then again, if you're a religious person, doesn't God state that sins should be forgiven and forgotten? It's something that is hard to do as a mere mortal. At least for me. I may be able to forgive, but forgetting is a whole other situation.

Then again, I tend to forget what I had for lunch yesterday, so who knows. Maybe I could. So far, I have found those are the things that stick inside the cranial lobe. Sins, wrongdoings, harmful actions. Each have had an impact on my life from someone or other and I haven't been able to get them to disappear into the nothingness that is forgotten memories.

Without my second chance, I'm not sure I would have found the REAL me. I have over the past several years and to be honest... I LOVE myself! Egotistical? No! You have to love yourself in order to truly love others. I now look at what's inside and care less about what is on the exterior. Those things are just surface images. It's the internal heart that makes a person who and what they are.

To sum up... I honestly believe there are times when second chances are beneficial and deserved. I also think that everyone should try to smile at least twice a day. It's off topic, but if you think about it, isn't a smile a "chance" to turn a frown upside down? If all else fails, go to bed and try again at the dawn of a new day.

"Don't think there are no second chances. Life always offers you a SECOND CHANCE... It's called TOMORROW."Nicholas Sparks